Anthony Joshua is set to take on Tyson Fury later this year, but one of his recent trainers has revealed a major concern that he has regarding his former fighter ahead of the long-awaited clash.
Joshua and Fury both came through their ‘tune-up’ tests last month but neither passed with flying colours. ‘AJ’ was knocked down twice in the first round before securing a vital stoppage in the second.
The all-British super-fight is now nearing an announcement, with the heavyweight duo poised to collide at Madison Square Garden in New York rather than at London’s Wembley Stadium as many had hoped.
For Fury, this will be in his first appearance at the legendary venue since his U.S. debut, when he was dropped by Steve Cunningham in the MSG Theater back in 2013. There, he bounced back to score a stoppage win whilst behind on the cards against the former IBF cruiserweight world champion.
Meanwhile, Joshua’s solitary trip to ‘The Garden’ was more harrowing, as he suffered the first defeat of his career to Andy Ruiz Jr. in one of boxing’s most astonishing upsets.
Speaking to ProBox TV, Robert Garcia, who trained Joshua for his 2022 rematch with Oleksandr Usyk, admitted that the potential scars from that loss to Ruiz are a major concern of his ahead of ‘AJ’s’ return to Madison Square Garden.
“Yes, I would [be worried about the fight happening at Madison Square Garden] because I worked with him, I know how he thinks and I know what goes through his mind.
“Unless, in the last three or four years since I worked with him, a lot has changed, but I don’t think that it is a good idea.
“The fact that they are bringing it to New York is already something that I don’t like, I think that fight should happen in the UK, we are all against it [being in the U.S.]”
It is believed that Fury-Joshua will take place on a Friday in November.
